Awfully quiet around here, isn't it?

The silence (relative) in our house this Shabbos was deliberate. Oldest child got a chance to spend the Sabbath with Grandma & Grandpa just down the road a piece. Given the nature of that road & the so-called drivers who use it, that's neither as close nor as quick a trip as it might look on the map. In the dead of night, Christmas Eve, say it shouldn't take more than 20 minutes. On our annual pilgrimage to see friends in Washington, DC last year it took us probably an hour to cover the same distance. That, incidentally, is why this year's pilgrimage involved leaving the house at 4:30 AM. It worked - we made it to New Jersey in about 45 minutes, which is as smooth a trip as can be.

Anyway, Grampa came by on Friday to get the girl - he pulled out as I was returning from work. I followed him for about 5 blocks honking & flashing the brights so I could say goodbye before the overnight. Happily, he noticed eventually (don't get me wrong - my Dad is a terrific person and a good driver, it's just he can get a little focused sometimes) and I got to say goodbye to the cutie. And then home, to figure out what was for dinner. As you may remember from last week's episode, no direct cooking on Sabbath, only reheating.

And boy, did we reheat. I cooked up some rice fresh, but the rest was leftovers. We had some frozen Chana Masala (Scroll down a bit, or Edit/Find on this page for the recipe). I grew up pretty traditionally, and meat on Friday night was pretty much expected, but I was willing to broaden my horizons for the sake of not cooking. Gave me time to make a batch of cookies. Chocolate chip, mostly without the chips. I'm part of what I've discovered is a growing cadre of people who like the Toll House cookies without the chips. I did concede to a couple of trays with chips.

And then a peaceful, on time Sabbath. I think younger child was confused she kept saying "[Older child] school?" We said "no, [older child] at Grampa's house", which was repeated to everyone's delight. I went to services solo on Saturday morning, and had the unique experience of uninterrupted prayer. I felt like I should have been doling out raisins or denying multiple lollypops to someone. The Mrs. felt a bit sad at Oldest's absence, but Friday was clearly a lot calmer. Saturday might have even included an unheard-of nap, but using her evil Femi-nine wiles, Mrs. pulled out the secret nap-denying tool. A 1500 piece puzzle.

Nap time was frittered away on this monster, based on this picture. Not finished, and in the middle of doing the edges we realized it was too big for the table we were using. It's now sitting on the Coffee Table, hanging over the edge.

Girl made it home in one piece, had a wonderful time seeing her cousins (who live near my parental units), and got put to bed. I changed the clocks, wasted more time on the puzzle, and the rest will follow in a post on our Sunday fun.